Much like Irvin Kershner’s genre classic before it, The Last Jedi is the second part of a full-blown Star Wars trilogy, finding itself sandwiched between The Force Awakens and the so-far untitled (and as of Tuesday evening, director-less) Episode IX. And like most blockbuster movie sequels before it, Rian Johnson’s December tentpole has been pitched as a slightly darker experience than its next of kin, thanks in large part to the escalating tensions between the First Order and the Resistance.

Supreme Leader Snoke is poised and ready to enter the fray, which all but confirms that Star Wars: The Last Jedi will pay a visit to his super-sized command center, the Supremacy. Not only that, but there have been rumblings that Luke and Rey’s training sessions on Ahch-To will be put on hold when the latter’s allies, specifically Poe and Finn, are captured by the First Order.

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Add all this together and it’s no wonder The Last Jedi is being described as a more ominous and indeed dramatic addition to the Star Wars franchise. That’s something Rian Johnson touched on while speaking with Empire (via Screen Rant), who also assured viewers that his upcoming sequel will delve deep into its principal characters.

This is the second movie in the trilogy, so it’s easy to draw parallels to Empire in terms of a darker feel. And we do dig into the characters: we’re going to challenge them and things are gonna get tough for everybody. But I didn’t want this to go too dark. One of the things I drew from J.J.’s film was that sense of fun and playfulness – that as much Star Wars as ‘I am your father’

On December 15th, Star Wars: The Last Jedi will herald the eighth mainline entry into the Skywalker saga and yes, the 100-day countdown has begun.